Combination vertical flued coke



Feb. E, E949. F. WETHLY 2,469,324

COMBINATION VERTICAL FLUED COKE OVEN BATTERY ADAPTED T0 COKE SWELLING GOALS Filed March 28, 1945 2 Sheets--Sheety l DDEE [IED

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Feb. 1, 1949. F. wETHLY 2,460,324 COIBINTION VERTICAL PLUED COKE OVEN BATTERY ADAPTED TO COKE SWELLING GOALS Filed yllarch 28,I 1945 2 Sheets-Shave?. 2

Patented Feb. l, 1949 COMBINATION VERTICAL FLUED COKE- OVEN BATTERY ADAPTED TO COKE SWELLING COALS y Frans Wethly, Manhasset, N. Y., assignor to Allied Chemical & Dye Corporation, a corporation of New York Application March 28, 1945, Serial No. 585,236

7 Claims.

This invention relates to an improvement in by-product coke oven batteries.

As is well known, coal expands when heated to coking temperature and exerts pressure on the sides of the chambers in which coking is effected, the amount of pressure depending primarily on the volatile content of the coal and the rate of heating. Modern vertlcally-iiued coke oven batteries are designed to accomplish coking the coal charges in the shortest practicable time and the rate of heating cannot be materially reduced without substantially increasingthe investment of the coke plant. Coke oven builders have not been successful in constructing vertically-flued regenerative horizontal coke oven batteries capable of withstanding pressure of more than about 2 pounds per square inch of coke oven wall surface.v It will be appreciated that in modern batteries involving from 60 to 80 ovens, each from 12 to 14 feet high, and from 40 to 44 feet long, the total pressure exerted by expansion of the coal against the heating walls forming the sides of the oven chambers is very large. The practical effect of these factors has been to prevent coking charges of coal containing less than about 26% of volatile material for the reason that coals of lower volatile content exert pressures in excess of 2 pounds per square inch, i. e., greater pressures than the oven structures are able to withstand. Attempts to coke coals of lower volatile content resulted in deformation and spalling of the heating walls with consequent rapid deterioration of the battery. It is highly desirable to coke coals of relatively low volatile content, e. g. coal containing less than 26% by weight of materials which are volatile at coking temperatures, because such coals produce metallurgical coke ol higher quality than the higher volatile coals, are more readily available in many localities, and are' less expensive than the high volatile coals. The problem of constructing coke ovens in which coals of low volatile content may be coked at rapid coking rates presents substantial diiculties because it not only involves strengthening the heating walls, but requires that the regenerative system of the battery be eciently combined with the strengthened heating walls.

It is an object of this invention to provide a regenerative vertically-ilued coke oven battery involving a novel combination of regenerators and strengthened heating walls which withstand relatively high coking pressures, adapted for the coking of coals of relatively low volatile content without spalling or objectionable deformation of the heating walls during the coking operation.

' outow regenerators.

Other objects and advantages will appear hereinafter.- f

The coke oven battery of the invention is of the combination type adapted for ring with preheated lean fuel gas and unpreheated rich fuel gas, and involves a series of horizontal coking chambers separated by heating walls, each heating wall comprising two rows of vertical flues communicating at their tops with ues of the same but not other rows and a massive refractory wall at least 16 inches thick extending crosswise of the battery between the two rows of ues, in combination with a regenerator system comprising supporting pillar walls disposedv directly beneath the rows of flues and separating rows of regenerators extending crosswise of the battery, alternate rows of the regenerators being located directly beneath the massive walls, and the intervening regenerator rowsvbeing located directly below the coking chambers. Each pair of adjacent rows of regenerators communicates with and is symmetrically located with respect to the row of heating flues directly above the pillar wall separating the pair of regenerator rows.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, each row of combustion i'lues is constituted of two exterior groups on the pusher and coke sides, respectively, of the battery and two intervening interior groups, the top of each exterior group being connected to the tops of the adjacent interor ygroup by a horizontal channel so that the exterior groups are operable simultaneously for flow in the opposite direction from the interior groups, and each row of regenerators comprises two exterior regenerators communicating with the exterior groups of heating ues of two of the rows of flues and an interior regenerator communicating with the interior groups of two of the rows of iiues. The regenerators are provided with bus flues operable to supply air to all of the inow regenerators, or air to alternate inflow regenerators lengthwise of the battery and lean fuel gas to the remaining inflow regenerators, and to conduct products of combustion from the Conventional reversing means are provided whereby the exterior regenerators and exterior groups of flues operate concurrently for upflow while the interior groups of flues and the interior regenerators operate concurrently for downflow and, upon reversal, the exterior regenerators and groups of lues operate for downflow and the interior regenerators and groups of flues operate for upflow. Preferably, the coke oven is of the underjet red type involving supply gas conduits extending from a basement space beneath the battery upwardly through the pillar walls to burners located in the heating iiues for supplying rich fuel gas such as coke oven gas to the nues, and also involving means for introducing lean fuel gas to the inflow regenerators of alternate regenerator rows when it is desired Vto utilize lean gas for heating the battery.-

I'his construction provides a coke oven battery l involving the combination of buttressed heating walls capable of withstanding without substantial deformation or spelling substantially greater pressure than verticallyflued ovens heretofore built and a regenerator structure including pairs of regenerators symmetrically located with respect to the nues with which they communicate. The battery' permits coking of coal charges of lower volatile content than has heretofore been possible in vertically ilued ovens without decreasing the rate at which the coal is heated to coking temperatures. Further, the symmetrical relationship of the rows of heating nues to the regenerators with which they communicate permits supplying air and fuel gas to the flues at the desired rates without creation of undesirable pressure differentials between adjacent rows of regenerators. 'Ihis is particularly advantageous when the oven is fired with lean fuel gas preheated in the inflow regenerators of alternate rows since it is then particularly desirable to prevent leakage between the regenerators employed for preheating gas and those employed for preheating air.

- In the accompanying drawings formingI a part of this specification and showing for purposes of exemplii'ication a preferred embodiment of the invention:

Figure 1 is a crosswisevertical cross-section taken on line l-I of Figure 3, through a coke oven battery of the underjet type embodying the improvement of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on line 2-2 of Figure 3;

Figure 3 is a composite fragmentary section taken lengthwise of the battery, the right-hand side of the figure being taken on line 3--3 of Figure 1 and the left-hand side being taken on line 3a3a of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

In the drawings there is shown a by-product coke oven embodying in its construction a plurality of coking chambers 1, and a plurality of intermediate crosswise-extending heating walls. Each colclng chamber in horizontal cross-section is of tapered shape as is conventional, the wide end of the coking chamber being on the coke side of the battery, i. e. the side on which the the narrower end of the pusher side. The coal v to be coked is charged into the coking chambers through conventional charging openings, not shown in the drawing, leading from the top of the battery to the coking' chambers, which openings are equipped with the usual removable covers.

Each heating wall comprises a heat transmitting wall on each side thereof and two rows 3 and 4 of verticalheating flues separated by an intervening massive masonry or refractory wall i of a thickness of at least 16 inches, preferably from 18 to 30 inches, which thickness is at least four times the thickness of the heat transmitting wall. The heating flues of each row are-com municably connected with other ilues of the same row, but not with the ilues of other rows. Each .coke is discharged from the coking chambers, and

tops of an interior group of fiues,`identifled by reference numerals il-22. On the pusher side of the battery. an exterior group of vertical ilues 23-28 are connected by horizontal flue 2l to interior group of ilues 20-3.. Thus. in the embodiment df the invention shown in the drawings, each heating wall involves two rows of ilues and each row is constituted of two outer and two inner groups of ilues, the outer groups operating concurrently for inflow while the inner groups of ilues operate concurrentlyfor outflow. Upon reversal, the inner groups lof fiues of each row operate as inflow flues, while the outer groups operate concurrently as outiiow fiues.

Flow through each flue may be regulated by a slide brick or damper brick 38 to vary the extent of the passage connecting the vertical ilues with the horizontal fiues I4 and 20. Each slide brick 38 (only one of which is shown on the drawing) may be advanced more or less over the passage connecting the' vertical i'iue with the horizontal flue through access ilues 4l which extend from the horizontal fines to the top of the battery. The base of each flue is provided with a burner for supplying rich fuel gas. such as coke oven gas, thereto;l crosswise of the battery the ilues are provided alternately with low burners 42 and high burners 4I.

The center to center distance between adjacent coke ovens of the battery may conveniently be from 5 to 6 feet. For example, where the center to center distance is 5 feet the coking chambers may be 18 inches wide, the wall portions A contiguous to the coking chambers 4 inches thick, the partitions B separating the individual flues 6 inches thick, and massive wall i 22 inches thick.

The regenerator structure of the battery involves supportingpillar walls 45 disposed directly below the rows 3 and 4 of heating ilues, and rows 46 and 41 of regenerators separated by the pillar walls. The pillar wallsy 45 rest on and are supported by a fiat mat or platform 48 suitably supported by columns 48 above a basement space 50 beneath the battery. Each row of regenerators comprises three regenerators 52, 53, and 54, containing conventional heat storing refractory material such as checker brick, each exterior regenerator 52 and 54 communicating through passages 55 with the exterior flue groups of two rows of heating flues, and interior regenerator 53 communicating through similar passages with the interior ilue groups of two rows of heating ilues. All of the regenerators l2 and 54 duringone period of operation of the battery operate for inflow into the outer groups of fines 8-13 and 23-28 communicating therewith while the products of combustion pass downwardly through the inner groups of ilues i522 and 20-38 into regenerators 53. Upon reversal, regenerators 5J and the fiues communicating therewith operate for inflow while products of combustion pass downwardly through the outer groups of iiues and regenerators 52, 54. Thus, all of the regenerator units in alignment longitudinally of the battery operate simultaneously for flow in the same direction. When rich fuel gas such as coke oven gas is employed for heating the coke oven, air for combustion is preheated in the innow regenerators of all of the regenerator rows and when lean g-as such as blast furnace or producer gas is utilized as fuel it is preheated .in the iniiow regenerators are located directly beneath the massive walls and the intervening regenerator rows 46 are located directly below the coking.

chambers and that each row of heating flues is served by two adjacent rows of regenerators located symmetrically on either side of the vertical median plane of the ue row. This symmetrical relationship of the regenerators with respect to the heating flues communicating therewith is an important -feature of the invention because it permits supplying air or lean fuel -gas and air through the regenerators to the flues at the desired rates without causing objectionable pressure differentials to arise between adjacent rows of regenerators. This construction is particularly advantageous when lean gas is ernployed as the fuel since it is then especially desirable to maintain the rates of flow through the regenerators constant and prevent leakage of air int-o the regenerators employed for preheating the fuel gas and vice versa.

In the base of each row of regenerators are two bus flues 60 and 6Il flues 60 communicating with exterior regenerators 52, 54, and flues 6| communicating with interior regenerators 53. The bus flues communicably connect all the regenerators with waste gas flue 62, and when rich fuel gas, such as coke oven gas, is employed for firing the battery also communicably connect all of the regenerators with air inlet channels 63 leading into the basement space. When lean fuel gas such as producer gas or blast furnace gas is utilized for firing the battery, the bus iiues of alternate regenerator rows 41 communicably connect the regenerators of these rows with lean iuel gas main 64 through piping 65 and communicably connect the regenerators of intervening rows 46 with air channels 63. Valve mechanism 66 of conventional construction is provided for placing channels 63 or main 64 in communication with bus flues 60 and simultaneously placing flues 6l in communication with waste gas flue 62. Uponreversal, this valve mechanism places bus flues 60 in communication with waste gas flue 62, and flues 6I in communication with air channels 63 or gas main 64. Air i-s supplied to the basement space through valve-controlled air inlets 6l in the basement wall on the pusher side of the battery.

Rich fuel gas such as coke oven gas is supplied to the burners 42 and 43 from a 4supply main 69 which, through a series of pibes 10, communicates with a series of headers 1i, one for each heating wall, supplying gas to gas conduits 'l2 leading upwardly through pillar Walls 45 to the burners. Suitable valve means (not shown) is associated with each conduit 'l2 to permit adjustment of the amount of coke oven gas supplied to each heating flue. As is customary, an air main 'i3 is connected by piping I4 with valvecontrolled pipes 10 to supply decarbonizing air to the gas conduits leading to the burners. When it is desired to operate the battery by burning an extraneously derived lean fuel gas, such as producer gas or blast furnace gas, in the flues, such gas is `supplied as hereinabove described, to the inflow regenerators of alternate regenerator rows, e. g. rows 41 as illustrated on the drawing, while the remaining inflow regenerators are employed to heat the air necessary for combustion 6 of the gas in the fiues. When operating with rich fuel gas such as coke oven gas fed directly to the ues, all of the inflow regenerators are preferably used to preheat the air fed to the flues.

It is evident that the construction of the invention provides buttressed Aheating walls of greatly increased strength. In this connection it will be observed that the individual heating flues are defined,by refractory wall portions A forming the sides ofthe colcing chambers, massive walls 5 and vertical refractory partitions B extending between walls A and 5. In practice, walls A are from 31/2 to 41/2 inches thick, partitions B being from 5 to 6 inches thick, and spaced from 15 to 20 inches apart. The relatively closely-spaced relationship of the partitions and their abutment against the strong brick wall 5 impart to the entire heating wall, particularly portions A, great strength and resistance to deformation as compared with conventional vertically flued heating walls constituted of parallel thin wall portions A directly connected by partitions similar to B.

In the operation of coke oven batteries, the coal is not customarily charged into and the coke discharged simultaneously from all of the coking chambers of the battery, but the chambers are operated in staggered relationship so that coke is pushed from one chamber before coking of the charge in the adjacent chamber is completed. The discharge of coke from one chamber while the coking operation is proceeding in an adjacent chamber removes lateral support from and promotes deformation, bowing, and spalling of conventionally constructed heating walls. The present invention eliminates or greatly minimizes such damage to the walls and permits coking of coal charges containing as low as 18 percent of volatile matter, which charges may develop pressure as high as 10 pounds per square inch against the sides of coking chambers. Further, the regenerators are combined with the heating walls in such manner that the coking operation may be carried out without reducing the rate of heating the coal charges and without substantial pressure differentials conducive to leakage between adjacent regenerators.

While the drawing illustrates the invention applied to a battery involving heating walls equipped with rows of flues arranged in two exterior and two interior groups, it will be evident that the invention may be embodied in batteries involving other ue arrangements in which the flues communicate with other flues of the same row, but not of other rows, as, for example, the twin flue arrangement disclosed in Figures 3 and 4 of my copending application Serial No. 580,858, filed March 3, 1945 which issued as Patent No, 2,407,356 on September 10, 1946. Further, the invention may be incorporated in batteries having two waste heat nues as disclosed in Pavltt United States Patent 2,155,954 of April 25, 1939.

Since certain changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that the above description shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. A coke oven battery adapted to coke low volatile coals comprising, in combination, a plurality of horizontal coking chambers, each pair of adjacent coking chambers being separated by a heating wall, each heating wall comprising a heat transmitting wall on each side of said heating Wall, two rows of' vertical flues and a massive casas refractory wall extending crosswise of the battery between said' two rows of ilues, said massive wall being devoid of openings and of a thickness at least four times the thickness of said heat transmitting wall, a plurality of regenerators located at a level beneath said coking chambers and heating walls and extending crosswise of said battery, alternate regenerators lengthwise of the battery being located directly beneath said coking chambers and the intervening regenerators being located directly beneath said massive walls, said regenerators communicating directly with the bases of said vertical fiues for supplying air to said iiues to support combustion of fuel gas fed to said nues.

2. A coke oven battery adapted to coke low volatile coals comprising, in combination, a plurality of coking chambers extending crosswise of Athe battery, each pair of adjacent coking chambers being separated by a heating wall comprising a heat transmitting wall on each side of said heating wall, two rows of vertical ilues and a massive refractory wall extending crosswise of the battery between said two rows of tlues, said massive wall being devoid of openings, at least 16 inches thick and of a thickness at least four times the thickness of said heat transmitting wall, the iiues of each row communicating at their upper ends with other ilues of the same row but not with fiues of other rows, rows of regenerators extending crosswise of said battery and communieating with said rows of fiues, alternate rows of regenerators lengthwise of the battery being 1ocated directly beneath said massive walls and the intervening regenerator rows being located di rectly beneath the coking chambers. said regenerators communicating directly with thebases of said vertical ilues for supplying air to said ilues to support combustion of fuel gas ied to said ilues, and regenerator separating pillar walls supporting said coking chambers and heating walls, said pillar walls extending crosswise of said battery directly beneath said rows of ilues.

3. A coke oven structure adapted to coke low volatile coals comprising, in combination, a series of alternate horizontal coking chambers and heating walls therefor arranged in side-by-side relation, each heating wall comprising a heat transmitting wall on each side of said heating wall, two rows of vertical fiues and a massive refractory wall extending crosswise of the battery between said two rows of flues, said massive wall being devoid of openings, at least 16 inches thick and of a thickness at least four times the thickness of said heat transmitting wall, each row -oi ilues comprising two exterior and two interior groups of ilues, channels connecting the tops of the exterior groups respectively with the tops of the adjacent interior groups, the two exterior groups being simultaneously operable for flow in one direction and the two interior groups being simultaneously operable for flow in the opposite direction, a'regenerator system disposed beneath the level of said coking chambers and heating walls and comprising rows of regenerators extending crosswise of the battery, each regenerator row comprising two exterior regenerators communicating respectively with two exterior groups of heating ilues and a regenerator communicating with two interior groups of fiues, said first-named regenerators being operable for ilow in one direction and said last-named regenerator being simultaneously operable for ilow in the opposite direction, alternate rows of regenerators being located directly beneath said coking cham- -oi alternate horizontal coking chambers and heating walls therefor arranged in side-by-side relation, each heating wall comprising a heat transmitting wall on each side of said heating wall, two rows of vertical ues and a massive refractory wall extending crosswise of thev battery between said two rows of ues, said massive wall being devoid of openings, at least 16 inches thick and of a thickness at least four times the thickness ofsaid heat transmitting wall; each row of iiues comprising two exterior and two interior groups of'ilues, channels connecting the tops of the exterior groups, respectively, with the tops of the adjacent interior groups, the two exterior groups being simultaneously operable for flow in one direction and the two interior groups being simultaneously operable for now in the opposite direction, a regenerator system disposed below the level of said coking chambers and heating walls and comprising rows of regenerators extending crosswise of the battery, each regenerator row comprising two exterior regenerators communicating respectively with the two exterior groups of heating fiues and an interior regenerator communicating with the two interior groups of nues, said exterior regenerators and exterior groups of ilues being operable for flow in one direction and said interior regenerator and interior groups of iiues being simultaneously operable for iiow in the opposite direction, alternate rows of regenerators being located directly below said coking chambers and the intervening regenerators being located directly below said massive walls, each of said rows of said heating fiues being symmetrically disposed with respect to and communicating with a pair of adjacent regenerator rows, regenerator separating pillar walls disposed directly beneath said rows oi heating ilues.

means for introducing fuel gas into regenerators of alternate rows, and means for introducing air into regenerators of the intervening rows, said regenerators communicating directly with the bases of said vertical ilues to supply said fuel gas and air to said vertical ilues so that combusion of said fuel gas is initiated in said vertical ues.

5. A coke oven battery adapted to coke low volatile coals comprising, in combination, a series of alternate horizontal coking chambers and heating walls therefor arranged in side-by-side relation, each heating wall comprising a heat transmitting wall on each side of said heating wall, two rows of vertical fiues and a massive refractorywall extending crosswise of the battery between said two rows of ilues, said massive wall being devoid of openings, at least 16 inches thick and o! a thickness at least four times the thickness of said heat transmitting wall, each ot said rows of fiues comprising ilues simultaneously operable for ilow in one direction connected at their tops with other ilues simultaneously operable for ilow in the opposite direction, a plurality of rows of regenerators located kat a level beneath said coking chambers and heating walls and extending crosswise of said battery, alternate rows of regenerators being located directly beneath said coking chambers and the intervening regenerators being located directly beneath said massive walls, some of the regenerators being communicably connected with iiues operable for flow in one direction and the remaining regenerators being communicably connected with nues operable for simultaneous iiow in the opposite direction, each of said rows of heating flues being symmetrically disposed with respect to and communicating with a pair of adjacent regenerator rows, means for supplying air to alternate rows of regenerators in a direction longitudinally of the battery. means for supplying lean fuel gas to the intervening rows of regenerators, and means for supplying rich fuel gas directly to said heating ues, said regenerators communicating with the bases of said vertical flues to supply air directly to said ilues to support combustion of fuel gas supplied to said vertical ilues.l

6. A coke oven battery adapted to coke low volatile coals comprising, in combination, a plurality of coking chambers extending crosswise of the battery. each pair of adjacent coking chambers being separated by a heating wall comprising a heat transmitting wail on each side of said heating wall. two rows of vertical fiues and a massive refractory wall extending crosswise of the battery between said two rows of dues. said massive wall being devoid of openings and of a thickness at least tour times the thickness of said heat transmitting wall, the ues oi' each row communicating at their upper ends with other iiues of thesame row only, rows of regenerators extending crosswise of said battery. alternate rows of regenerators lengthwise of the battery being located directly beneath said massive walls and the intervening rows of re- 40 generators being located directly beneath the coking chambers,l the rowof regenerators directly'beneath each oi' said massive walls communicating only with the two rows of vertical heating nues on opposite sides'of said wall and the row of regenerators directlybeneath each o! said coking chambers communicating only with the two rows of= vertical iiu'es on opposite sides oi' said coking chamber, said regenerators communicating directly with the bases of said vertical fiues for supplying air to said-fines to support combustion of fuel gas fed to said' liues.

7. A coke oven battery adapted to coke low volatile coals comprising, in combination, a plurality of horizontally extending coking chambers and heating walls arranged in alternate relation and extending crosswise of the battery, each heating wall comprising a heat transmitting wall on each side of said heating wall, two rows of vertical fiues and a massive refractory wall extending crsswise of the battery between said two rows of iiues, said massive wall being devoid of openings, at least 16 inches thick and of a thickness at least four times the thickness of said heat transmitting wall, the Iiues of each row communicating at their upper ends with other ues of the same row only, rows of regenerators extending crosswise of the battery, alternate rows of said regenerators lengthwise of the battery being located directly beneath said massive walls and the intervening regenerator rows being located directly beneath the coking chambers, the regenerator row directly beneath each of said massive walls communicating only with the two rows of vertical flues on opposite sides of said wall and the regenerator row beneath each of said coking chambers communicating only with the two rows of vertical ues on opposite sides of said coking chamber, said regenerators communicating directly with the bases of said vertical iiues for supplying air to said fiues to support combustion of fuel gas fed to said flues, and regenerator separating pillar walls supporting said coking chambers and heating walls, said pillar walls extending crosswise of said battery directly beneath said rows of flues.

FRANS WETHLY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references arev of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Datev 516,184 Brunck Mar. 13, 1894 668,402 Elkins Feb. 19, 1901 1,411,224 Roberts Mar. 28, 1922 1,478,570 Kus -1--- Dec. 25, 1923 1,485,451 Becker Mar. 4, 1924 1,947,500 Schrader Feb. 20, 1934 

